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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. stock — goods
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. mate — a partner
  5. sharp — clever
  6. degree — an amount
  7. mate — to breed
  8. degree — temperature
  9. press — newspapers
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. mate — a friend
  12. degree — from a university
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. last — to go on
  16. hand — help
  17. press — a publisher
  18. last — finally
  19. press — to push
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. last — final
  22. hand — in cards
  23. stock — shares
  24. stock — a soup base

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com